Moving in moving on
by A-Karana
Summary: What if Emily moves in with Lorelai after the beginning of season 7?
1. Early morning visit

**Chapter 1: Early morning visit**

Lorelai awoke with a start. There was a noise, a loud noise. Somebody was banging on her door downstairs.

Slowly she turned her head and looked at the alarm-clock on her bedside-table, then groaned, 6:05 the red numbers told her without mercy. She had only been asleep for two hours. It had still been dark then, but now it was bright and the birds were singing. 'Stupid birds! shootem all', she thought.

Her own thoughts had been keeping her up these last four weeks. They haunted her day and night. The pictures of what had been, what was, and what could have been. She kept asking herself the same questions: Was it the right decision? Should I go back to him? Will I ever get over him? Did he ever love me?

She had left him, broken up with him, given him his ring back, because she hadn´t been able to stand it anymore that he only included her in a part of his life. He had kept her away from his daughter, he didn´t say a word for two months, he never introduced her to Anna and he didn´t let her buy him luggage. He gave her a ring, he let her buy the perfect dress, and let her make reservations for the church. Then he let her cancel it all.

But now that she wasn´t a part of his life anymore, she didn´t feel better.

She was a mess, even worse than during their last break-up, but she knew how to hide it better this time. She didn´t lay in bed crying, only at night. She never broke down in front of anyone, only when she was alone.

It had been her fault, she had been lying, she had met with Christopher; she had slept with Christopher. It was impossible for her to erase that fact and she had told him; had told him that she had made his worst fear come true and slept with Christopher.

But before it had been him. Only him and it did not seem like he had had any interest in this relationship whatsoever. He hadn´t even tried to include her.

The last time they had broken up he had shown up at her door late in the evening. Maybe this time he would show up early in the morning? But she knew he wouldnt. She was with Chris now. He knew it, he had seen them. But maybe there was a tiny chance that it could be him?

This thought woke her up completely within a few seconds.

She jumped out of bed and ran down the stairs, without caring about slipping on her bathrobe. She pulled open the door, but it wasn´t Luke in front of it.

"Good morning Lorelai!" her mother greeted her. Lorelai just stared.

"Why am I not more surprised that you open the door dressed like this, or should I say undressed?" Emily asked and pointed to the T-shirt Lorelai wore as a nightgown, sans pants.

"Mother, what are you doing here at six o´clock in the morning on a Sunday?" Lorelai asked and had trouble keeping herself from yelling.

"Well, see, your father went on a business-trip two weeks ago and because I didn´t hear anything from you and you did not answer my calls and I am incredibly bored at the moment, because nearly all of my friends are on vacation or sick, I thought it would be nice if I would live with you until your father comes back. While I am here I could keep searching for a house and ..." while Emily kept talking Lorelai saw the luggage next to her mother and then she just closed the door again. This could not be true. She must still be asleep. This was a dream. She slowly walked upstairs again and plopped down on the bed.

Although she was so tired she paid attention not to touch his side of the bed. She grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around her, and closed her eyes again.

* * *

"Aaaaah!" She yelled surprised three minutes later when her bedroom door flung open.

"Lorelai Gilmore! What are you thinking closing that door in my face? My luggage is still downstairs and you didn´t even bother to ask if you could help me with it!" Emily said annoyed and stood with crossed arms in front of Lorelai´s bed, looking at her accusingly.

"God, this is a weird nightmare!" Lorelai muttered and pulled the blanket over her head.

"Lorelai would you stand up already!" Emily requested.

"Nooo! Go away! Let me sleep!" She groaned from under the blanket.

"This is incredibly rude, even for your standard!" Emily said and took a look around the room.

"You know what is rude? Breaking into people's houses at six o´clock on a Sunday, that´s rude!" came Lorelai´s muffled voice from under the blanket.

"Where is Luke?" Emily changed the subject and walked around the room inspecting every corner.

"In the diner!" Lorelai answered and pulled back the blanket, then stood up.

She hadn´t told her parents about the breakup yet. She just could not tell them that she had left another fiance, although she knew her mother would be thrilled about the fact that she was with Chris now. She couldnt stand it.

"He had to open? He should really hire more staff. If you two want to have children he should be around more often!" Emily stated and watched while Lorelai picked out her clothes, but didn´t answer. Lorelai wasn´t able to, she choked up when her mother had mentioned kids.

"Did someone die?" Emily asked then.

"No,why?" Lorelai asked confused when she found her voice again.

"Because your clothes are all black. I thought there might be a funeral."

"No funeral, mother! I just feel like wearing black today!" Lorelai told her with a pointed look and walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

* * *

When she came out of the bathroom, after taking a long shower, drying her hair, and putting on make-up to cover the dark circles around her eyes; she found Emily in the living-room on the couch with a cup of coffee in her hand.

"That you are moving in here was a joke, right?" Lorelai asked and sat down beside her mother.

"No, why would I be joking about that? It´s better for me to be here for the real-estate hunt and I thought it would be nice to spend some time with you and my future son-in-law." Emily said like it was the most normal thing.

"I need coffee now!" Lorelai said and walked into the kitchen. She grabbed a cup and filled it with the hot liquid her mother had made. Her mother had made coffee? She thought about pinching herself for a moment, but then just took a sip of the coffee.

Slowly she walked back into the living room. Emily was standing in front of the fireplace, looking at the pictures.

"I thought I would find a photo of Luke here. I saw these beautiful wedding invitations last week and they had pictures of the bride and the groom in it. Maybe you could take those? But then I need a picture of Luke. Here are only pictures of you and Rory on the mantle. I thought he moved in, why are there no pictures of him. You should really make a place for him in the house. Or maybe you could get another one together? I could ask the man at the real-estate office tomorrow."

"What are you doing at the real estate office again, mom?" Lorelai asked to get away from the Luke topic.

"We are still negotiating about the house we will buy for you two." Emily replied and kept looking around the room. Lorelai only wanted to get out of this situation as fast as possible, but she didn't know how. 'Mom, I slept with Chris, broke up with Luke, and I am with Chris now, although I still love Luke', wouldn't be the right way. But then again… why not? She thought.

"Mom, could you sit down for a second?" Lorelai asked her then.

"Luke doesnt want the house! I knew it! But you have to talk with him, convince him that it is a beautiful house. You saw it and from your reaction I assumed you like it..."

"Mom, please!" Lorelai said forcefully

"Just... sit down for a second, okay?"

"Okay." Emily said slowly and sat down on the couch.

"I... I am not..." Lorelai couldn't get it out.

"You are not what?"

"I... I met Chris several times last week."

"Tell him I said hello when you see him the next time. Has he found someone now? Otherwise I could arrange another meeting with one of my friends' daughters. Libby Anderson just got divorced a week ago."

"He found someone." Lorelai said and sat down beside her mother, because she thought her legs would give in any second and focused on her hands.

"Really? Who is she? And you're telling me this now? How long have they been together? Seriously, he could have called me and told me!"

"It's me, mom." Lorelai said even quieter.

"What?" Emily's head shot up and she stared at Lorelai.

"I am with Chris now. We're dating." She confessed.

"But what about..." Emily asked stunned and was once again interrupted by Lorelai.

"We're not engaged anymore. We're not getting married. We're not even together anymore." Lorelai said and felt defeated when she saw a smile forming on Emily's face which became brighter and brighter slowly until Emily beamed at her.

**TBC**


	2. Drawings

**Chapter 2: Drawings**

"I see" said Emily, still with this annoying smile on her face, while Lorelai was staring at her hands again.

"So it seems I have been right all those years: the real family belongs together" Emily grinned and Lorelai looked up.

"Luke said never" she told her mother, who had no idea what Lorelai was talking about.

"He said never?"

"After the dinner with the psychologist I asked him to elope with me. I said it was now or never. He chose never" Lorelai said quietly and the sadness radiated from her words and hit Emily.

"Who does this imbecile thinks he is? Does he really think there a better woman who is going to walk into this greasy diner of his, wanting to marry him? I always knew that he was stupid, but this goes beyond my imagination!" Emily shrieked and Lorelai looked intently at her mother for some seconds. She got what Emily was trying to say.

"Thank you" she just said and got up from the couch.

"Can I go back to sleep now?"

"I will unpack in the meantime" Emily nodded.

"And Lorelai?" she stopped her daughter when she wanted to climb up the stairs.

"Yeah?"

"I know you don't want to hear it, but I am very pleased it all works out the way it should in the end"

"Uhuh" was all Lorelai said before she went back to her bedroom.

* * *

Around noon, Lorelai was awake again and Emily had unpacked her suitcases, the door bell rang. While Lorelai was still trying to get her mothers tons of clothesand other things out of the way, Emily opened the door.

"Well hello Christopher!" she smiled, pleasently surprised to see him here, at her daughters house.

"Hello Emily,what are you doing here?" he greeted her, returned her smile and kissed her on the cheek.

"I decided to stay at Lorelai's for a while,while Richard is on a bussiness trip. I thought it would be nice to spend some time with my daughter" Emily told him and led him into the house, where he handed her his coat, which she hung up.

"That's nice of you. I am sure Lorelai is happy to spend some time with you" Christopher said and if Emily hadn't known Lorelai, she would have actually believed him.

"Well, come in, come in! I am sure Lorelai is already waiting for you" Emily smiled and gave him a wink.They found Lorelai in Rory's old room where she tried to stuff her mothers clothes into Rory's dresser.

"Hey Lore'" Chrisopher said and tried to get past the suitcases, toiletries and clothes which were strewn all over the place.

"Hey Chris" Lorelai greeted him back, but made no attempt to leave the room and come to him.

"Are you ready?" he asked her over the chaos in between them.

"Do I look ready?" she shot back and sounded annoyed.

"No, you don't. But I thought you said I should pick you up at noon. It is noon now, so let's go."

"Can't you see that I have stuff to do here? Go into the living-room and watch TV, we can go when I'm done" she said in a harsh tone, which caused Emily to raise her eyebrows in confusion.

"Lorelai, why don't you go and get ready and I will organize my things myself.?" she offered.

"Yeah, sure, I guess" Lorelai said, but her eyes said Stay out of this!

* * *

Chris was still watching TV when Lorelai came back down nearly an hour later.

"Mom, we're leaving" Lorelai yelled into the general direction of Rory's room.

"Lorelai, the shelf is broken. Someone has to fix ot, otherwise it will break down completely" Emily yelled back, then walked outside into the living-room, where she found Lorelai and Chris standing beside each other.

"Yeah, I will tell Lu... I mean, I will call Tom and tell him to fix it" Lorelai said and bit her lower-lip, which did not go unnoticed by Emily.

"Christopher, can't you take a look at it?" Emily asked.

"No, he can't. Lu... a friend made this for Rory and if Chris tries to repair it, I am sure it will be completely ruined afterwards" Lorelai said before he could even answer.

"Well, then, okay you two. Have fun!" Emily shrugged, but her eyes were fixated on Lorelai's face.

"See you, Emily" Chris kissed her cheek again.

"Bye Mom" Lorelai said, before she and Chris walked outside to his car.

* * *

While the two were away Emily used the time to snoop around the house. First she walked upstirs into Lorelai's bedroom and inspected it. It was still the same since she had last saw it. It was beautiful now that it was renovated and Emily liked the colors. The bed was made, but only one half. The other was still unmade and Emily decided to do it. She pulled the comforter up and smoothed out the pillow. When she wanted to arrange it, her eyes caught sight of something under the pillow. She oulled it out and held a blue flanell shirt in her hands. It was wrinkled and disgusted she held it away from her with two fingers, then placed it back under the pillow.

Then she walked into the bathroom and looked around carefully. Around one sink were thing scattered all around, the other one looked empty. Not even a guest-toothbrush was found there. There were two hooks on the door, but only one bathrobe, two soapholders in the shower, but only one shampoo. It looked strange and Emily wasn't sure if she should be happy because Luke's things were gone, or worried, because Chris things weren't there yet.

She walked back out of the bathroom and bedroom and wanted to go downstairs when she decided to look into that last room upstairs. She had always wondered what was behind that last door. Feeling like a curious kid snooping around in his grandparents house, she opened the door slowly and quietly, although she was alone. The room was extremely small and she saw a sweing-machine in one corner, some clothes lying around and a few boxes in one corner.

They all had the description "Rory" onthe side and Emily couldn't resist to open the box on top. Inside were old clothes, stuffed animals, craftings and pictures Rory had drawn. The clothes weren't bigger than for a ten year old and the drawings looked like from kindergarden or primary-school. Emily took some out and looked through them: a house, a dog, some kids playing, another house, a gnome, something that looked like a car... or a train? And a picture of three people: Father mother and child.The father had the arm around the mother's shoulder and the child was holding onto his other hand.

"So she did wish for her parents being together"Emily thought and smiled sadly.When she turned the paper around her smile vanished though.

"Rory, Momy and Luke" the decription said in a child-like handwriting.

**TBC**


	3. pictures and a date

**Chapter 3: Pictures and a date**

While Emily was snooping around Lorelai's house, Christopher had invited Lorelai to a romantic date. The dates with Luke had always included dinner, a movie, and then going home. Or skipping the movies to go home and make out faster. But this date was different.

Chris had rented an open air movie theater just for the two of them. The dinner consisted of tacos, popcorn, and jello. Nothing Luke would have approved of.

_He doesn't care if I am rotting my insides_, Lorelai thought and then scolded herself for that thought. Luke was not there anymore. They were no longer engaged and no longer together. She sighed and took another handful of popcorn.

"Hey Lor' is the movie okay?" Chris asked her and laid his right arm around her shoulders.

"Uhuh" She said and tried to find a way to wiggle out of his embrace, without being too obvious.

"You're quiet. You're sure everything is alright?" He asked and gave her shoulder a squeeze.

"Yeah, sure, just watching the movie." She answered and gave him a forced smile.

"Good!" He smiled relieved and kissed her cheek.

_Luke would have known that I am lying_, shot through her head. She put her hand on the back of Chris's head and pulled him close for a kiss, which only lasted some seconds. She had to get the Luke thoughts out of her head. When they broke apart she laced her fingers through Chris's, on her shoulder and lay her head on his shoulder.

* * *

After Emily had gotten over the initial shock the description on the back of the drawing had caused, she made her way back downstairs. Until now she had found absolutely nothing about Luke, no letter, no present, no picture. Knowing Lorelai she knew these things had to be somewhere. Lorelai would never throw them away.

After going through all of Lorelai's drawers in the whole house, she finally found what she had been looking for downstairs in the closet: The Luke box. Or better: the Luke boxes, because there were at least ten of them, taking all the space in the closet.

She pulled the one on top out and carried it with her into the living room where she set it down on the table. She opened the box and started to pull out the contents: Two flannel-shirts, a blue ribbon, a book, aftershave, several notes and letters bundled up together, a spatula, several coffee cups, a tooth brush, a yellow flower, and a photo-album.

At first she threw the toothbrush, the spatula and the shirts back into the box. Then she looked through the notes:

"_Just heat up the mashed potatoes, but not on the stove! Stay away from it. Do us all a favor and use your microwave. I hope Rory will feel better soon. Luke"_

on a napkin it said.

_Nicole?_

_Pay you back every month from the moment the Inn is set. 2 interests. Okay?_

_Thank you sooo much! You're my hero!_

And on a yellow post it Emily found even more notes.

"_Hey sleeping beauty, coffee is downstairs. See you later, X Luke"_

"_Hope you're feeling better. Call me when youre up, L."_

"_We still on for tonight? Pick you up at eight, Love L."_

"_Rory called. Said you should call her back. Your mother also called. Checked the ID and let it through to the answering machine. Talk to you later, Luke"_

"_Your breakfast is in the fridge, stop by the diner later. Miss you! L."_

"_Paul Anka is at Babette's. I will spend the day with April, but will stop by tonight. Thanks for forgiving me. I love you! Luke"_

"_Jeez, Lorelai, where the heck are you? I tried to call you and stopped by several times. Call me when youre home. I'm worried about you. L."_

Emily opened the envelopes as well, but instead of letters she found postcards inside.

"_I arrived here this morning and let me tell you, TJ is already driving me crazy. The fair is full of lunatics and Liz's babbling is not making it better. Talk to you later. Luke"_

"_So, wow, nice talk last night. And, well, you know me, I couldn't react immediately and before I chicken out again: I miss you, too. A lot actually. Yours Luke"_

"_Last card and I think it will be home after me, but I sent it as well... I am glad I'll be home soon. Luke_

_P.S: I will be coming home today! Miss you"_

In the second envelope there had only been one card.

"_Hello Lorelai_

_The trip with April is going a lot better than I thought and she actually called me "Dad" in front of her friends. Couldn't get you on the phone so I thought I would write you a card and tell you this. April says hello as well. I'll call you tomorrow. Love you, Luke_

_P.S.: April likes a boy named "Freddy". Should I beat him up now or wait a few more days?"_

Emily had to smile involuntarily at the last sentence, but then put the cards back in the envelopes, as well as the notes.

* * *

"You're coming home with me?" Chris asked and kissed Lorelai softly after the movie was over.

"Nah, I don't think that's a good idea." Lorelai said while fidgeting with her hands. They were still in Chris's car.

"Why not? I think it's a very good idea. We could continue the evening." Chris said seductively and kissed her again. Longer and more passionate this time, but Lorelai pulled back.

"Chris, Gigi is home and my mother is alone at my house which is giving me a very uneasy feeling inside. Please, drive me home." She said and tried to smile at him.

"Okay, we will continue this the next time." Chris grinned and started the engine.

Lorelai felt relieved, another night without Chris to look forward to. Since that horrible night she had always gotten out of sleeping with him again. She could barely bear his kisses, how would she get through having sex with him? She knew it came with the territory of being his girlfriend, but she wasn't looking forward to it.

She had never had a boyfriend were she had avoided the sexual aspect actually she had had her fair share of relationships which were only based on that. She felt pathetic when she thought about never having sex again, maybe she should become a nun. She wanted to have sex, but only with Luke.

With those thoughts in her head she was staring out of the window while Chris drove her back home to Stars Hollow.

* * *

Emily had opened the first photo album and was through Rory's baby and toddler pictures when the first one got her attention.

"_Caterpillar Emilio's funeral: Rory and Luke, both deeply moved_" Lorelai had written under it. The picture showed eleven year old Rory next to Luke, who held a small black box, while Rory was reading something. Luke's free hand was lying on Rory's shoulder and his look was full of adoration for this little girl.

"_Mom harassing Luke"_ was written under another picture where an annoyed looking Luke was carrying Lorelai up the stairs. Her left leg was in a cast and she was laughing hysterically.

The album was finished and Emily started to look through the assortment of pictures which lay in a photo-box. She put all the pictures with Luke in them in a separate pile, which was nearly half of the pictures.

"_Luke and Rory, Chilton graduation"_

"_Luke, Lane, Rory, and me Thanksgiving 1998"_

"_The flying Kirk, a picture initiated by Luke"_

"_My hero Luke fixing stove Emma with the help of Bert"_

"_Luke asleep on our couch"_

"_Burger boy swimming in the lake"_

"_Our first dance"_

"_Hon' and me Christmas 2005"_

"_Rory, Luke, and me New Year's eve 2005"_

The photos showed Luke on nearly every occasion. There were pictures of her daughter and the diner-man as a happy couple. Some pictures were taken with their knowledge, but the sweeter ones without their knowledge. Emily had never realized how present Luke had been in her daughter's life even before they had become a couple, but the pictures documented that clearly, visible for everyone who looked through them.

The last picture was still in her hand when she heard a car pull up the driveway. She threw the pictures back into the box, then packed everything back into the Luke-box and ran with it to the closet. The closet door just closed when the front-door opened and Lorelai and Chris stepped in.

"Oh, mom, you're still awake." Lorelai said surprised when she saw Emily in the entrance.

"Yes, I was just... uh... watching TV and now I wanted to get something to drink." Emily said out of breath.

"You okay?" Lorelai narrowed her eyes at her mother.

"Yes, I am just very thirsty and ran out here." Emily said like it was the most normal thing on earth.

"You ran out here?" Lorelai repeated and stressed the word "ran".

"Yes. Did you have a nice evening?" Emily tried to change the topic.

"Yes, very nice." Chris smiled and slung his arm around Lorelai's waist. Lorelai jumped at the contact and it was now Emily who narrowed her eyes.

"Didn't you say you were thirsty?" Lorelai asked and looked at her mother.

"Yes, do you want something?" Emily asked overly-politely.

"No, we're good." Chris answered and tightened his grip around Lorelai's waist.

While Emily was in the kitchen she heard them whisper in the foyer.

"What if I stay here? I'll make it worth your while." Chris whispered and then seemed to kiss her. At least it sounded like it.

"Chris, I have to get up really early tomorrow. Thanks for the nice evening. I'll call you, okay?"

"Okay, bye!" He kissed her again.

"Bye Emily!" He yelled into the kitchen.

"Bye Christopher!" Emily yelled back and heard how he whispered "I'll miss you" to Lorelai. She remained silent.

Emily emerged out of the kitchen and saw Lorelai still standing in front of the door, staring blankly ahead.

"Lorelai?" Emily asked softly and touched Lorelai's shoulder.

"I'm going to bed. Good night mom!" Lorelai said and rushed up the stairs and slammed the door shut behind her. Emily looked after her and sighed, before she turned off the lights and went to bed herself.

**TBC**


	4. Frustration

**Chapter 4: Frustration**

The next morning Emily was awake long before Lorelai was. She had heard her daughter tossing and turning in her bed for a long time and had wondered if she should go upstairs and talk to her. Knowing Lorelai and the fact that her daughter would not open up to her, she decided against it.

"Morning" Lorelai mumbled when she stumbled into the kitchen around eight, fully dressed and showered but not awake yet.

"Good morning Lorelai" Emily greeted her cheerfully. Lorelai only glared at her before she went to the coffee-machine, took one of the cups which stood beside it and filled the cup.

"What are you doing today?" Emily asked her after Lorelai had plopped down on a chair.

"Working?" Lorelai answered after taking a sip.

"Can't you take the day off?"

"Why should I take the day off?" Lorelai asked confused.

"Because otherwise I will be here all by myself all day and I might get bored" Emily shrugged.

"Didn't you say something about thing you had to do when you crushed in here yesterday?"

"I didn't crush in here! But thank you for comparing this situation to a car accident"

"I did not"

" In which other case do you use the expression "to crush in" then? Certainly not when a mother wants to spend some time with her daughter!"

"Gah!" was all Lorelai said to that while she rolled her yes before she drank the rest of her coffee in one big gulp.

"I have to go" she said then and stood up.

"Lorelai!" Emily's shriek held her back and she froze to the spot.

"You tossed and turned al night long and now you want to go to work looking like this?"

"Looking like what mother?" she replied , now clearly annoyed.

"Like you haven't slept in ages!"

"So what? I don't wanna marry anybody at the Inn!" Lorelai said louder, then stopped, brought her hand to her mouth. Emily waited if she would run, but nothing happened.

"It does not matter what you are planning to do at the Inn, I am just saying that you are not, how would you put it? You're not looking so hot right now" Emily said and stood up.

Lorelai stopped staring at the floor and brought her gaze up to her mothers face. A grin started to spread on her face before she started laughing.

"I never thought I would hear you say that! Looking so hot" Lorelai was laughing hard and Emily had to smile.

"We will visit this Asian woman today and take a look at the antiques, then we will meet Mr. Dosey and have a nice chat with him about moving the frontiers of Stars Hollow, so that your new house will still be in Stars Hollow and then we can go and eat something!" Emily said after a second and Lorelai stopped laughing abruptly.

"Mom, I have to work" she replied with force.

"No, you don't. I already called Michel. He said it's alright if you take the day off" Emily informed her.

"You what?" Lorelai couldn't believe it.

"I only organized to get you a free day, that's all. Let me just get my purse then I am ready to go" Emily just smiled and went into Rory's room. A second later she emerged with her coat on and her purse over her shoulders.

"Come on, let's go!" she smiled, passed Lorelai and walked outside.

"Will this nightmare never end?" Lorelai muttered and followed her. She slammed the door shut and walked up to Emily.

"Don't you lock the door?" Emily asked with an innocent expression. Lorelai glared at her, then walked back up to the door and locked it.

* * *

Their first stop was at Mrs Kim's antiques and Lorelai entered after her mother, who had already disappeared between the chairs and tables of the shop.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" they heard Mrs Kim and suddenly she appeared out of the blue in front of them, what startled them both, mother and daughter.

"What do you want?" asked Mrs Kim in her usual tone.

"I want to look around if you have some nice things" Emily answered politely.

"All of my things are nice and good quality. Really good quality. Do you want to buy something then look, if you want to stand here then go. I don't have the time for that!" Mrs Kim told them.

"Hi, Mrs. Kim. How is Lane?" Lorelai tried to break through to her.

"She is pregnant. Worked the first time, now she never has to do it again. Luck girl. Now buy something!" Mrs. Kim replied.

"This small table over there, 19th century?" Emily came back into the talk.

"18th century, nut-wood, good quality!"

"It would look adorable in the entry in your new house" Emily whispered to Lorelai.

"How much is it?" she asked Mrs. Kim then.

"2000$"

"1000$"

"1800$"

"1500$ and the picture over there" Emily offered

"Deal, but no delivery" Mrs Kim had the last word and held out her hand.

"Deal. Someone will pick it up in the afternoon" Emily smiled, while Lorelai only rolled her eyes.

* * *

Two hours, three fights and several "gahs" later, the two of them were walking towards the gazebo, when Emily spotted the huge hole in the diner.

"Lorelai what happened over there?" Emily asked and pointed to the missing window.

"A car crashed into the diner" Lorelai said, but avoided to look at the diner.

"Was somebody hurt? Is Luke okay?" Emily asked, concern thick in her voice.

"No, I mean.. I think he is okay"

"Didn't you ask him?"

"Mom, we are broken up!"

"Lorelai it is rude and impolite if someone was in an accident not to ask how the person is! I thought I taught you that bit at least!" Emily lectured her.

"Mom, I can't just call him and ask "How are you?" We have broken up, we're over.. god, we're so over" Lorelai said that last part quieter than the rest.

"So, you wouldn't be interested or sad if something happened to him?" Emily prodded.

"Of course I would be. I can't even stand the thought that something could happen to him"

"You still love him?" Emily didn't give up.

"No" Lorelai answered quickly.

"What do you feel for him?"

"I have no more feelings for him. I am with Chris now" Lorelai said firmly.

"Good, then it won't bother you that Luke is coming straight towards us" Emily informed her and took a step back, waiting what would come.

* * *

Luke had run some errands and wanted to go back to the diner when he saw Emily and Lorelai standing in his way. He wondered briefly what Emily was doing in Stars Hollow and why Lorelai wasn't working, but then he just went to being annoyed because they had to stand in his way and because it was to late to just walk in the other direction again. Emily had already spotted him

"Hello Emily" Luke said when he walked passed them.

"Hello, Luke. Nice to see you. I just said how horrible it is what happened to your diner" Emily said and stopped his walking by with her speech.

"Yeah, I'll live, but thanks for your sympathy Emily, it's not common these days" Luke said.

"I hope we will see each other soon" Emily smiled and ignored his remark.

"I doubt that. You don't want to see me and you won't see me anymore. I am sure Christopher will be happy to visit you, though" Luke said with sarcasm.

"Luke stop it!" Lorelai addressed him for the first time.

"What? I am not allowed to talk about your new boyfriend?" he hissed.

"Chris is not my boyfriend!"

"Future husband? Already got yourself a new fiancé? You proposed again?" Luke shot back

"Urgh, I can't talk to you when you're like that!" Lorelai yelled frustrated.

"Maybe you should go and sleep with Chris then, maybe it helps with your frustration! Seemed to do the job the last time" Luke yelled back.

"Luke this is enough!" Emily jumped in.

"Yeah, it is. It is more than enough! Have a nice life with the deadbeat! You two really deserve each other!" Luke said, pointing his index finger to Lorelai's face, before he marched off.

When Emily turned around she saw that Lorelai was barely able to compose herself. She was shaking, biting her lowed lip and staring at the ground.

"Let's go home" Emily only said and led her back to the house.

* * *

Lorelai threw her purse on the floor when they entered, her keys landed in a corner of the living- room, while Emily went into Rory's room to give her daughter some space, but left the door ajar.

She heard her wandering through the house, walking upstairs, coming downstairs seconds later.

The next thing she heard was her daughter's voice.

"Chris? Hey, yeah, it's me. You wanna come over tonight? Yeah sure. And bring your toothbrush!" she heard her say and Emily's eyebrows nearly disappeared somewhere in her hair.

**TBC**


	5. When you cried

**Jeez, I totally fogot about this and I found the chapter today on my laptop. I am so sorry for not updating sooner. Yell at me the next time!

* * *

****Chapter 5: When you cried**

Of course Chris had come over immediately after Lorelai's call and they had gone out for some time and left Emily alone in the house. This time she just sat down and tried to read a book though while she she waited for them to come back.

It didn't last long though because her thoughts were keeping her from concentrating on the book.

She had never really understood her daughter, but most of the times she had proved that she knew her better than Lorelai thought.

She could see in her eyes when she was worried and she heard in her voice when she lied.

She had known since Rory's 16th birthday that Lorelai had a thing for Luke and she hadn't been too surprised when Kirk had used the word "boyfriend" referring to Luke back then.

Lorelai loved him, always had and maybe always would, but Emily's disapproval had turned out to be correct in the end. He had let her down, he hadn't been able to care for her and look out for her. He just wasn't able to give Lorelai what she needed.

She always needed to be the center of attention, to be treated like a princess, because she deserved nothing less. But he had neither had the money nor the upbringing to give her that.

While Emily sat in the living room thinking about Luke, she got more and more angry about the way Luke had treated her daughter.

What was that imbecile thinking?

She closed the book and left the house without giving it any more thought and went straight to Luke's.

* * *

Luke wasn't inside but when she asked the strange Mexican who was serving the counter he told her that Luke was upstairs and he didn't try to stop her when she marched up the steps and knocked on the door.

When he didn't answer after the second knock she knocked again and heard a voice from inside.

"Geez, can't I at least do my bills…." Luke's voice trailed off when he saw who was in front of his door.

"Emily" he gasped and she just walked into his apartment without an invitation.

"What were you thinking?" she asked him then with a tone that would intimidate every king or queen.

"What?" he asked confused and locked his arms in front of his chest.

"What were you thinking talking to Lorelai the way you did?" she asked angrily.

"I will talk to her whichever way I like to!" he shot back.

"I will stand by and watch how you rip her into pieces. You've done enough!"

"I rip her into pieces and I have done enough? You have no idea what you are talking about, Emily! Lorelai doen't care the least bit what I say or what I think or feel, she proved that thorogly by jumping into bed with that jerk."

"Christopher is no jerk. He comes from a respectable family and has money and upbringing!" she defended him.

"Money, he has, but upbringing? Where do you see any upbringing by being a selfish, self-centered deadbeat who would live on the streets if it wasn't for his parent's money and contacts? He never accomplished anything, nothing. He isn't even capable to look out for his own children."

"Christopher is an amazing father!"

"Yeah, then where was he all those years? I never saw him at any of Rory's birthdays or school plays. He abandoned his kid and the mother, if that's good upbringing then I am glad I wasn't raised by one of those rich snobs!" Luke was yelling now.

"Don't you dare yelling at me, young man! You were the one who said you would marry my daughter and then bolted. You made her unhappy and you broke her heart. I knew from the first second that you weren't good for her and that you could never make her happy." Emily told him.

"I wasn't the one who dumped her! She gave me an ultimatum, she wanted me to elope with her without giving me two seconds to think about it, she was the one who cheated not me. So don't tell me that made her unhappy. She brought that to herself and she can't be that unhappy when she can finally be wit Christopher. That's what she always wanted: The whole package, white picket-fence, dog and a Volvo with him. You might buy them matching Jogging-suits then it's so perfect that it's sickening. Take them to the golf club or the DAR with you, but don't come here and blame me for her being unhappy. You must be more then happy that I am out of the picture, because I always only was the greasy diner-man"

"That is not true. We accepted you. We invited you to Friday night dinner and we wanted to buy you a house, you and Lorelai and your future family as a wedding-present. But by the time you had already made her that unhappy that she started crying at the real-estate office when she saw the house and told me that it would never happen." Emily also raised her voice now.

"You wanted to buy us a house?" Luke asked, not believing what he was hearing.

"Yes, it would have been our wedding-present" she nodded.

"Well, then give it to Chris and her I am sure the wedding can't be far with the speed dating they are doing. Two seconds after wanting to marry me she jumps into bed with him , I am sure you can expect your first grandchildren in the near future" Luke said with a lot of bitterness in his voice.

"I never thought that I would tell you this, but she really loved you. And you had nothing better to do then neglect her and shut her out. This was your fault Luke. Not hers and certainly not mine. And Lorelai is hurting enough as it is, she doesn't need any more of your verbal attacks," Emily told him, turned around and left the apartment.

* * *

When she came back Lorelai and Christopher were sitting in front of the TV, joking and laughing. Lorelai was teasing him and throwing popcorn at him and for a second Emily could see the two as sixteen year old teenagers.

That's when she saw it, what was happening here: Whenever Lorelai was around Chris she completely forgot about the present or the future. She was living in the past living what she had missed. She was being 16 again, but this time without being pregnant or having a baby around. There was no pressure from the parents or from the school. She didn't have a care in the world other than that the next popcorn would hit him in the face, where she wanted it.

She was babbling more, she was giggling more and she was teasing more. Lorelai was transformed to being a teenager again.

"Hey you two" she greeted them after she had the ability to speak again.

"Hey mom" Lorelai giggled and for a second Emily wondered if Lorelai was drunk.

"Lorelai you already know what we will be having for dinner?" Emily wanted to know.

"Ah, sorry Emily, but we already had lunch at a greek restaurant" Christopher informed her and tried to catch Lorelai's hand so that she would stop throwing things t him.

"Well, then I think I will drive back to Hardford and eat there. I am still paying the maid so she can cook something." Emily said and left the house.

* * *

She suddenly had a strange feeling out leaving these two alone. She felt like she needed to watch them so they wouldn't do any stupid things.

She tried to hurry with the dinner and the inspection of the house at home. She certainly needed a new maid when Richard would be back, but it took her longer than intended and so it was around ten when she came back that night to Lorelai's house.

She noticed that Chris' car was no longer parked in the driveway and she thought maybe the two had gone out again.

Although when she neared the house she heard music blasting from the inside. The voice of the female singer was high and the piano sounded sad. This was not music they would play while… enjoying themselves, she thought.

She entered and found the house dark, only the light from the stereo illuminating the living room a bit.

_I'm so tired of being here  
Suppressed by all my childish fears  
And if you have to leave  
I wish that you would just leave  
'Cause your presence still lingers here  
And it won't leave me alone _

These wounds won't seem to heal  
This pain is just too real  
There's just too much that time cannot erase

The woman sang and Emily turned down the volume, when she had found the knob finally.

When the music was nothing more than background music she heard something and hurried up the stairs and into Lorelai's remodelled bedroom.

The door was open and she found her hysterically sobbing on the bed.

Without thinking about it she sat down on the bed and stroked over Lorelai's hair.

"I couldn't" Lorelai sobbed.

"Shshh" made Emily and tried to calm her, without success.

"I couldn't sleep with him. Not here, not again" Lorelai pressed out.

_You used to captivate me  
By your resonating light  
Now I'm bound by the life you left behind  
Your face it haunts  
My once pleasant dreams  
Your voice it chased away  
All the sanity in me _

These wounds won't seem to heal  
This pain is just too real  
There's just too much that time cannot erase

"Oh Lorelai," Emil didn't know what to say to that. She had known all along that Chris wasn't what Lorelai wanted, she had seen it when he had first entered the house.

"Luke", Lorelai sobbed. " I love him, mommy" she cried so desperately tht it brought tears to Emily's eyes.

_When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears  
When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears  
And I held your hand through all of these years  
But you still have  
All of me_

_I've tried so hard to tell myself that you're gone  
But though you're still with me  
I've been alone all along _

Emily was even surer than she had been this afternoon after her visit to Luke: She needed to do something.

**TBC**


	6. You broke her

**Chapter 6: You broke her**

When Lorelai finally had fallen asleep Emily slipped quietly out of the room and walked downstairs. She paced in the living-room for some time, contemplating what to do. It was late, or early, depended how you looked at it. She knew that it would be reasonable to wait until morning to do something, but then she asked herself why she was wondering what was reasonable. Nobody in this town did ever act reasonable. They were crazy and unorthodox and not worrying about what others might think about them.

Lorelai had told her everything what had happened with her and Luke and her and Chris in every detail. Some details she really didn't want to know about, but she didn't have the heart to interrupt Lorelai's speech, which was interrupter by sniffs and sobs every few seconds.

So Emily Gilmore took her jacket at 2 am in the morning, dressed in a jogging suit and slippers and left the house. She did not drive this time, but she walked.

It took her less time than she had thought and the cold air didn't make her cold. She was slightly out of breath, but that didn't stop her from banging on the door in front of her.

When everything kept silent and nothing happened, she picked up some small stones and threw them at the windows.

After the fifth stone a light was turned on and the window was opened.

"What?" he yelled out in the cold, angry that somebody had disturbed his restless sleep.

"You! Get down here!" she yelled her order at him and to her surprise he looked confused, stepped back from the window and seconds later the door of the diner flung open and Luke was standing there barefoot , in sweatpants and a T-shirt.

"Emily what…," he started but was interrupted.

"You broke her!" she yelled at him.

"What?" he asked gain and the question brought flashbacks to the moment when Lorelai had proposed to him.

"You broke her! I have seen my daughter at some very low points in her life and there was always one thing I could be sure of: That she would never include me and never break down in front of me. Never! And then you come with your filthy diner and promise her to marry her. You make her wait and shut her out of your life because of a girl you don't even know" she started.

"April is my daughter!" Luke threw in, but it didn't stop Emily's angry rant.

"You sit here and pity yourself because she slept with that stupid kid. He was there and it seems like he wanted her, something you don't. I always thought you would be a simple guy, a very simple guy and that you would love her and marry her and have kids with her, as simple as that. I accepted it because that's what my daughter wanted. But then your long lost daughter shows up and you screw everything up. That is something that happens in stupid soap operas, but in real life you fix this. I remember that Lorelai once lectured me about love, obligations and family and I could tell that this was word by word your speech. And now that you have to act up and be there, you let her walk away, without fighting for her?" she asked him and he looked at her with a somehow scared look.

"There is nothing left to fight for" he said then, took a chair off one of the tables and sat down, left Emily standing.

"Is Lorelai not worth fighting for?" she asked. Luke remained silent and stared at the floor.

"I know she hurt you, you hurt each other and she made a mistake. But Luke I am worried. I am standing here as a mother begging you to help her daughter" she said nearly desperate.

"I can't help her" he insisted.

"You are the only one who can. I came home today and found her on the bed, hysterically crying. I have never seen her like that. I've never even seen her cry. And then I find her and she says that she loves you and that she sent Chris away, because she couldn't stand his touch. I always thought my daughter grew up because of Rory, that she was only relying on herself and no one else. I hated that she never let me in, but I admired her strength at the same time. But now there is nothing left. At first she turned six-teen again, fooling around with Chris, getting drunk and not thinking about what she was doing. And now she is falling apart. She relied on you and she trusted you and you hurt her so bad that everything she believed in and what she leaned on is taken away from her. There is nothing left. You gave her support and you were her friend and then you shut her out when she wanted desperately to be in, to help you and be your wife. I will never understand why you did this and honestly at the moment I don't care. I want you to come with me and talk to her. Explain to her why you did what you did so that she can go on at least, with or without you. Give her her strength back!" she said. Luke looked at her like she had two heads. He had always doubted that there was a heart in this body at all, and now she gave him this heartfelt speech and wanted him to come and talk to Lorelai, after all she had said to him this afternoon.

"I can't." he said then, the hurt showing in his eyes.

"Lukas Danes if you don't get up and go over to Lorelai right now I will hire someone to kill you!" she threatened and meant it at that moment.

"Go ahead. I honestly don't understand why you get involved in all of this. It's not like you ever cared" he made a last attempt to get to her and to make her leave.

"What would you do if in ten years or so you find your daughter hysterical and broken in her bed after her fiancé shut her out for months and treated her like he didn't care about her.He postpones the wedding and then doesn't fight for her, doesn't even realize how desperate she is when she gives him an ultimatum?" Emily asked him then. Luke thought about this for a while, not sure if he should tell Emily the answer that came to his mind immediately or if he should lie. He decided to tell the truth then. He had nothing to lose.

"I would break every bone in his body slowly and painfully before I would kill him" he answered and looked up for the first time.

"Fix this" Emily said and looked him in the eyes. Luke sighed and slowly stood up, walked behind the counter.

"Let's go" he said, came back now with his keys in his hands and together they walked over to Lorelai's house without saying another word.

**TBC**


	7. Queen of denial

**Thank you so much for all of your reviews!**

**I hve another anouncement to make: We started a Ficathon on my LJ, the adress you'll find in my profile. If you love to write JJ stories.. please sign up!

* * *

****Chapter 7: Queen of denial**

When they walked to the house Luke wasn't feeling the cold surrounding him. He was nervous and his heart nearly beat out of his chest, while Emily's words echoed in his head. The fear was rising with every step that he took towards the house. He wasn't paying attention to Emily, who was walking beside him the whole time.

Only when she stopped when they had arrived and opened the door he realized that she was still there.

Emily held the door open for him and wondered what he was thinking. He looked nervous and scared. Really, really scared. She wondered if it was because of the things she had threatened him with or of the state he would find Lorelai in. Scared he couldn't fix it, fix her.

Luke passed her and walked into the living-room where he stood sheepishly and looked at the stairs, debating with himself if he really had the courage to walk upstairs.

"She's upstairs", Emily informed him unnecessarily to urge him to walk up the stairs.

"Yeah", he said and nodded, but didn't move.

Emily wasn't sure how long they stood there and looked at the stairs, but when the first sob echoed through the house Luke closed his eyes, like it could prevent him from getting hurt by it. When he opened his eyes with the next sob he started moving towards the stairs. He glanced shortly at Emily and then slowly walked upstairs without realizing that Emily was following him.

He took a deep breath when he reached the open bedroom door and then looked inside. The room was dark, but he could make out Lorelai's figure on the bed, because the light from the corridor was streaming into the bedroom.

* * *

Without realizing it he tried to walk extremely quiet so that Lorelai wouldn't hear him. Slowly he neared the bed and then sat down, while Lorelai was facing in the opposite direction.

"Hey", he whispered and touched her shoulder. He was a loss for words and had not idea what to say in this situation. A part of him wanted to take her I his arms and hold her and kiss her and tell her everything would be alright, but he just couldn't.

Lorelai froze when she heard his voice and for a second she thought she was imagining it. But then she felt him beside her on the bed, felt the heat from his body and could smell his scent. It was comforting and torturing her at the same time.

Slowly she turned her head and looked at him.

Luke's breath caught in his throat when he saw her bloodshot, read and swollen eyes.

"Lorelai", he breathed out when he could. He had to say her name, because she looked so broken, Emily was right. No joke, no smile, no masquerade. She was shattered in pieces right in front of his eyes and his task was to fit those pieces together again.

"What are you doing here?" she asked him and even her voice sounded weak and not like her.

"What are you doing? Lorelai this isn't you", he said and motioned to her tear stained face.

"Seems like that is me. The new me. The real me, maybe", she shrugged and sniffed at the same time.

"That's not true", he shook his head.

"No, well nice to hear that", she said and sniffed again. The sadness was still present, but now a bitternes swept over Lorelai. He was the reason why she was feeling like shit and now here he was, trying to chit-chat.

"So, I will ask again: What are you doing here? It's in the middle of the night and you told me more than once that you need your sleep. I don't think I wept so loud that I woke you up!", she said in an aggressive tone.

"Lorelai, please. Let's just talk about this", Luke sighed.

"Talk? Well that's what I am doing. If you would answer my question then we would talk. But okay, let's change the topic… Nice weather outside… a bit dark maybe", she said.

"Oh stop that. You know that is not what I want to talk about", Luke was losing his patience slowly but steadily.

"Ah, now you also want to decide on the topic? Okay.. let's see… maybe we should talk about why you didn't tell me about April for months? Or why you said you wanted to marry me although you didn't? Not good? Why didn't you tell me you don't love me anymore? Cause that's why you did let me walk away, right? You simply didn't care anymore.." she trailed of when another sob escaped her mouth.

Luke stared at her. He couldn't believe that she was lying on this bed, talking so bitter and questioning if he had really loved her.

"I did that", he said quietly and didn't realize that he had said it out loud until Lorelai asked him.

"What did you do?" He stared at her, understanding that she had heard it and that the stalling had to be over now.

"I did that to you. I turned you in this bitter woman in front of me, who is questioning everything we ever had", he explained and Lorelai remained silent.

"Lorelai, I love you. I always have and always will and it breaks my heart seeing you like this", he told her honestly. This was not the time to stay closed up.

"Why now?" she asked after another seconds of silence.

"What?" he asked confused.

"Why does it break your heart now seeing me like this? This is the state I've been in ever since you shut me out of your life. I was able to keep it in, yes, but before you always knew. You always knew how I felt because you cared", she said and looked him in the eyes.

"I never stopped caring about you. I know I was preoccupied and in my own head. I know I screwed up how I handled it when I found out about April, but I didn't keep quiet because I didn't care, but because I care so much about you".

"That's stupid and I wish I could believe it, but I can't".

"I didn't tell you because I found out the day that Rory came back. I wanted to tell you, I really did, but you were so happy and I didn't want to destroy that. It was always like that. I wanted to tell you, you smiled and I didn't want to ruin it by telling you. You had had such a rough time when Rory had gone nuts and then you were finally happy again. Who was I to destroy that? The day before you ran into April I wanted to tell you, I really did. And then you came down the stairs in your wedding dress and you looked… well, perfect… and again I couldn't tell you. I really did care", he emphasized.

"Why didn't want you to marry me then?" she asked and wiped away another tear.

"I wanted to, but at the right time. I wanted to prove you first that I was able to handle this thing with April. I wanted to show you that I am a good father. I didn't want to marry you and then get a divorce because you discovered that I am not good enough."

"God, why didn't I see how stupid you are? You think you could have screwed up? Well, what about me? I was scared I wasn't good enough and that's why you didn't want me around April. All other people were allowed to spent time with her, except me" Lorelai shook her head in disbelieve.

"Lorelai, why would you do that? You are a great mother. The best! Why would you doubt yourself?" Luke couldn't believe this. What had he done to her? Who was he that he had the ability to make Lorelai Gilmore doubt herself? He had always been the one who told her she could do anything she wanted. But here she was, a shadow of herself, full of doubts and bitterness and only because of his insecurities.

"I wanted to be included, I wanted to be a good stepmother and a good wife. I wanted to be with you, marry you and have kids with you. I so desperately wanted that", she said and her voice suddenly lacked any emotion, while she was staring straight ahead at the wall.

"I wanted that, too. I wanted all of that", Luke said.

"Why didn't we make it then? Why?" she asked and looked at him again.

"Because we both believed that the other one is a mind reader. We put the other on a throne, had this image of perfection and now we had to find out that it's not like that." Luke summed it up.

"Me perfect? You really are stupid!" Lorelai laughed bitterly.

"You are a great mother, you are intelligent and beautiful. You would do everything for your friends and those you love. You are the most selfless person I ever met and your laugh is contagious." Luke told her and gave her a small smile.

"I could say those exact things about you", Lorelai said and her tears stopped for the first time.

"I am not beautiful", he said and smiled at her, relieved that she had stopped crying.

"Handsome?" she asked and gave him a small smile in return, to which Luke only shook his head slightly.

"I am sorry about Christopher", she said then and both smiles vanished.

"Why did you go to him?" he asked her.

"Because I … I … I was hurt and I thought we were over. I though you don't love me anymore. So I went to him in order to get really drunk. When we kissed, I though what the hell, I thought it wouldn't matter, because you didn't want me anymore. I was disgusted by myself the next morning and I realized that I had also done it, because you had hurt me so much, that I just needed it to be over. I knew that if I would sleep with him there was no way in hell you would ever want me back. I was right about that, but what I thought would stop hurting, was actually driving me crazy with pain. I couldn't stand it. I couldn't stand the thought that I would be alone, without you. He distracted me so I wasn't going crazy, but at the same time I was going crazy 'cause I couldn't stand kissing someone else but you. So I ended it and now it's all hitting full force. The Queen of denial is getting bitten in the ass by it" she said and started to sniff again, what caused Luke to wince again, like he had done several times during her explanation.

Slowly he moved his arm to her shoulder and then pulled her into a hug. She sobbed against his shoulder and her arms went around him while she clung to him.

Luke was surprised when he held her and there were no pictures of her and Chris haunting him. There was no hate towards her. It felt so good to have her in his arms again after all this time and he discovered that he still wanted her. He discovered he was able to get past all this. He discovered that he could kiss her without thinking about her in Chris arms and he discovered that he was stupid to believe they weren't meant to be.

He pulled her tighter against him, laid his cheek on her hair and breathed her in, before he placed a kiss on her hair. Lorelai stiffened in his arms when she felt the slightest touch of his lips against her head and pulled back slightly to look at him.

"Luke?" she asked him timidly and looked into his eyes.

"I love you Lorelai. I still do" he said and kissed her on the lips for a few seconds, before he pulled back.

"Luke, please don't" she said, shook her head and pulled away from him.

"Why?" he asked her confused.

"Because we both know that you'll never be able to forgive me for what I did. And I can't get my hopes up, just that you'll tell me some time soon, that you can't do it, cause you can't forgive me", she said.

"I don't know how and I don't know when, but I already did. Please, let us try this again. If not know, then I'll wait until you are ready. I love you", he emphasized.

Lorelai looked at him and took another look into his eyes. During the time after he found out about April she hadn't been able to read him anymore. But now she was again. She could see that he spoke the truth and that he was being honest with her. He would wait for her, even longer than he already did.

"You already waited eight years", she said softly, after she had taken a deep breath.

"I have and I will wait another eight years if that's what it takes" he admitted, because he knew he would. He had no choice.

"Move in with me", she said then.

"Okay", he nodded and a smile appeared on his face.

"Marry me", she requested.

"You couldn't let me propose this time, could you?" he smiled even brighter and pulled her to him by her hands.

"Please" she said, her fore head lay against his forehead.

"When?" he just asked.

"Now?" she shrugged.

"Okay, let's go", he grinned and wanted to stand up.

"Nah, just a test", she laughed suddenly and pulled him back down on the bed.

"But you could move in when we finished here", she said and he nodded.

"Okay. But what is there to finish?" he raised his eyebrows.

"I can think of something", she smiled brightly at him, before she kissed him passionately. There was a touch of desperation in the kiss, a need to be together and make it work. Lorelai lay down on the bed and Luke followed her, their lips glued together. He lay down on top of her, on top of the wet tissues, the wrinkled sheets and on top of the bed she had cried for everything he would give her.

* * *

Emily had listened to the whole exchange just outside the room, scared these two would screw it up again. More than once she had been tempted to rush in and give them piece of her mind, but it hadn't been needed.

Quietly she closed Lorelai's bedroom door completely and tiptoed downstairs, where she took her bags and left the house, but not without leaving a note.

"_I guess it is better I move back out, so someone different can move in. Call me if you need help moving Luke's things in. I expect you both next Friday. Love, your mother_", it said.

**The end

* * *

So, not how I planed to end this whole thing, but it needed to be done, becauseI think this story really started toget worse with every chapter. Thanks to all those who read and reviewed, without you I probably wouldn't even have finished it, even though I hate unfinished stories.**

I will start working on OSD as soon as a new german story of mine is finished, but both won't be that much more chapters. (The german story exactly 4, that much I can tell). I already have an idea for a new story afterwards and it will be somehow similar to "Call my name and save me".

Thanks for reading again! I would love if you would leave me a final review!


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